North Korea

As some of you know my interests in foreign policy have focused on North East Asia. Well, something interesting happened. Today the United States removed North Korea from its list of state-sponsors of terrorism.

But, who cares right? Sure they've got nukes, chemicals and germs... but really? Does anybody take these guys seriously? They're always bluffing right?

Right.

They are bluffing. Ironically that's the reason why the Bush administration's decision to remove them from the list of state sponsors or terrorism was wise. North Korea is wacky but is no longer a threat to the United States or its neighbors. North Korea is a basket case, there's no doubt about that. But, once it's understood, its basic policy is that the government wants to be acknowledged as the legitimate sovereign entity in its territory. That's it. It's not terribly interested in southern expansion, it has no current beef with Japan or the US and isn't likely to be a revisionist power in the future.

However, it's government's legitimacy is tied up in opposing the United States and a series of rather over the top ideological goals that make it very difficult for the leadership to act reasonably and still maintain their power over the indoctrinated public. The US wisely offered the North Korean's an out. Make the removal from the list of state sponsors of terror the big win... and the little loss of denuclearization is less important to the people.

So yes, they were bluffing. But it was good that this time the Americans were able to fold anyway. Hopefully the North Koreans can see the benefits of joining the world-system that its neighbor China has enjoyed and become something closer to an oddity than a threat.